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European Communities (Finance) Bill

My Lords, I have some sympathy with the noble Lord’s second point. He will know that the Government are concerned to clarify these issues as fully as possible and will endeavour to make progress on that. On his first point, however, is he seriously suggesting that the relationship between Britain and Europe after it had withdrawn from Europe would be roughly the same as the relationship between Switzerland and Europe? I hear what he says about the economies. Anyone would think that he had never been anywhere near political relationships or set foot in a political assembly and would not recognise the issues to which actions of that kind give rise. He can certainly press me as strongly as he likes about certain details with regard to the European Community, but if he thinks that I believe that the United Kingdom withdrawing from the European Community would have the same impact and relationships as Switzerland not joining the European Community, he and I live in rather different worlds.